It's only words

Good morning. Still damp, still grey, still misty outside. 

Yesterday I went to the 20 21 Art Centre in town. I need to get out of the house at least once a day to check in with the real outside world. There is a new exhibition which has arrived from the Tate Gallery. These big installations do the rounds, and sometimes travel the world. Now it is our turn to host these particular artworks. Here is some blurb.

Jenny Holzer, Inflammatory Essays, 1979–82, lithograph on colored paper.

The text-based art of Jenny Holzer appears in places one wouldn't expect to find it. On t-shirts, billboards, parking meters and LED signs (Holzer's signature medium), her stark one-liners call attention to social injustice and shed light on dark corners of the human psyche. "PRIVATE PROPERTY CREATED CRIME," "ABUSE OF POWER COMES AS NO SURPRISE," and "PROTECT ME FROM WHAT I WANT" are intended to generate debate and make us think critically. A political activist as well as an artist.

Some close ups so you can read the words. Make of it what you will. Find your own meanings in these  essays. The short sentences are direct and straight to the point. It is often confrontational, and would be offensive to some. Some of it can be easily applied to life in 2026. 

There is a short video on yoootooob about Jenny and this particular artwork. 

Another video filmed at the Tate Modern. Jessye shares her views. 

It's interesting to see how other galleries have presented this installation. Some have mixed up the colours, here the curator has applied them with exact precision in vertical strips. 

It's Saturday. Enjoy your weekend. See you soon. Toodle pip.   ilona